Current through Register No. 12, March 21, 2024
(a)
Approval for a school site by the department shall not be given until the
requirements in Ed 321.21(b)-(u) are completed.
(b) A letter of intent shall consist of:
(1) Project information on the name,
location, contact person, description, anticipated district approval date,
estimated total cost, and anticipated commencement and completion dates for the
project;
(2) Description of the
deficiencies in the existing building; and
(3) A statement to be signed by the
superintendent of schools of the district making application which indicates
that the school board has reviewed the requirements of
RSA
198:15-a, 15-b, and 15-c and Ed 321, and that
a copy of Ed 321 has been provided to the lead architect or engineer
responsible for design of the project.
(c) The letter of intent shall be received no
later than 18 months prior to the beginning of the biennium in which school
building aid grants are to be dispersed. If requested, the commissioner shall
waive the letter of intent or its submittal deadline pursuant to the waiver
provisions under
Ed
321.28.
(d) An application for school building aid
shall consist of:
(1) School building aid
application for each building where eligible construction work is to be
accomplished, which shall include the following information from the school
district:
a. Project information including the
location, contact person, estimated cost of the project, school approval level,
project type, and project delivery method;
b. Identification of architect and project
manager, if required by
RSA
198:15-c;
c. Identification of the total number of
students, staff, and student drivers, the design capacity, educational
capacity, and utilization rate;
d.
A brief description of the project;
e. Description of the project alternatives
considered and rational for selecting the alternative chosen;
f. Description of the current and proposed
energy use of the facility;
g. A
list of the deficiencies and, if applicable, a statement of how the proposed
project will correct the deficiencies;
h. A description of the maintenance
requirements identified in
RSA 198:15-b,
I-a;
i. Square footage of the building before and
after construction;
j. Anticipated
project costs and unit costs;
k.
Anticipated funding sources and anticipated amounts from each source;
and
l. Amount of district debt,
total assessed valuation, and percent debt to valuation;
(2) The school building application shall
include the following attachments:
a. A
completed and signed "Condition Evaluation Form" dated February 5,
2020;
b. A statement of assurance,
signed by the chair of the school board, which indicates that the district
intends to maintain and service all installed equipment according to the
manufacturer's instructions;
c. A
copy of the school or district's 20-year maintenance plan in accordance with
RSA
198:15I-a. (l);
d. Minutes of the meeting to put forth the
project for voter consideration and funding;
e. Most recent fire and health inspection
reports;
f. Copy of completed
request for project review from the department of cultural resource, division
of historical resources;
g.
Acknowledgement that plans shall be submitted to the state fire marshal's
office for a plan review prior to construction;
h. Acknowledgement that the applicant shall
submit for energy efficiency reimbursement from their regulated utility under
RSA 374-F, as required by
RSA
198:15-c;
i. Copy of engineering reports, space
utilization studies, or other appropriate documents that confirm the need to
remediate the existing conditions;
j. Life cycle cost analysis, in accordance
with
RSA
198:15-bI.(b)(2);
k. Documentation on the selected design
capacity;
l. Educational capacity
calculations;
m. An aerial view of
the existing building(s) with the total square footage and the year of
construction labeled for the original building and any additions;
n. Site plan which indicates the boundaries
of school owned property to be developed, location of proposed construction,
location of wetlands and bodies of water, and location of existing
structures;
o. Preliminary
architectural drawings including outside elevations, and dimensioned floor
plans that are labeled as to the use of each space;
p. Outline of technical
specifications;
q. The completion
of the data collection survey or the general description of major building
systems, including but not limited to heating, ventilation, electrical,
plumbing, and fire protection;
r.
If the project includes the purchase of land, attach site information such as
the total buildable area, descriptions of the restrictions the site might have,
the status of any necessary testing and permitting, and the proposed grading
plan; and
s. A digital copy of the
application and attachments.
(e) To be considered for building aid in the
following biennium, complete applications shall be filed with the department no
later than July 1 of the year prior to the biennium in which school building
aid grants are to be dispersed in accordance with
RSA
198:15-c.
(f) The department shall notify the applicant
within 30 days of receipt of an application that either:
(1) The application is complete and approved
for project ranking; or
(2) The
application is incomplete and is not approved for project ranking.
(g) The department shall award a
score to each application using the "Condition Evaluation Form" dated February
5, 2020. The department shall conduct a site visit to the location of each
application subject to the availability of time and funds for making such
visits. The department shall present the applications including the completed
condition evaluation to the school building authority.
(h) Projects shall be scored according to the
following criteria.
(1) Correcting unsafe
conditions, 250 points possible;
(2) Updating obsolete, inefficient, and
unsuitable facilities, including correcting deficiencies with the Americans
with Disabilities Act, 100 points possible;
(3) Correcting overcrowding conditions and
addressing increased enrollment projections, 50 points possible;
(4) Having an active maintenance program that
tracks scheduled and unscheduled repairs, upkeep, minor alterations,
enhancements to buildings, and preventive maintenance necessary to achieve the
design life expectancy of building systems and components, 125 points
possible;
(5) Percent of student
enrollment eligible for free or reduced cost meals, 200 points
possible;
(6) Adding and
integrating school security systems, 100 points possible;
(7) Contributing to operational cost
efficiencies, consolidation, or reduced property taxes, 50 points
possible;
(8) Designing a high
performance facility that provides an environment that is energy and recourse
efficient, 100 points possible; and
(9) Preserving historical elements of the
facility, as requested by the New Hampshire department of natural and cultural
resources, division of historical resources, 25 points possible.
(i) Projects shall be ranked in
descending order with the project receiving the highest score ranked first with
the following exceptions:
(1) No application
which receives at least half of the possible points for unsafe conditions in
(h)(1) above shall be ranked below any application that receives fewer than
half of the possible points for unsafe conditions;
(2) Except as allowed by (i)(1) above an
application that was on the prioritized list in the previous biennium and
approved by the district's legislative body, but did not receive a grant due to
insufficient funds in the previous biennium, shall be ranked ahead of any
application that was not on the list in the previous biennium; and
(3) In the event that 2 or more applications
receive the same number of points, they shall be ranked according to the number
of points scored in the unsafe conditions category. If a tie score remains
after ranking for unsafe conditions, the school building authority shall
determine the ranking of those applications.
(j) Points for unsafe conditions shall be
awarded only for conditions caused by normal wear and tear, code changes since
construction of the building, or a natural event. Conditions that result from
insufficient maintenance or neglect as described in
Ed
321.25(g) or
Ed
321.25(h) shall not be considered for
points.
(k) In accordance with
RSA
198:15-cII(a), by December 1
of each year prior to the biennium in which school building aid grants are to
be dispersed, the school building authority shall verify the ranking submitted
by the commissioner and submit a list in descending rank order to the state
board of education for approval. If the submitted list differs from the
preliminary ranking from the department of education, the school building
authority shall justify the new ranking list using the same criteria identified
in (h) and (i) above.
(l) The
prioritized list of applications shall be approved by majority vote of the
school building authority.
(m) In
accordance with
RSA
198:15-c, II.(a), the state
board shall approve and publish the descending rank ordered list of
applications by January 15 of the year prior to the biennium in which school
building aid grants are to be dispersed. If the state board determines that the
school building authority or the department failed to comply with the
requirements of Ed 321 or
RSA
198:15-c in developing the prioritized list,
the list shall be returned for appropriate corrective actions.
(n) School districts and charter schools
shall have 15 business days following the publication of the prioritized list
of applications to appeal the prioritization of their applications. Appeals
shall be submitted in writing to the state board and signed by the chair of the
local school board or chair of the board of directors of a charter
school.
(o) Final drawings and
technical specifications shall be provided to the department for review and
approval as soon as they become available.
(p) The department shall approve final
drawings and technical specifications upon receiving the following information:
(1) Drawings and technical specifications
signed and stamped by individuals licensed in the appropriate disciplines to
practice architecture or engineering in the state of New Hampshire;
(2) A signed letter of certification provided
by the designers indicating that the design meets the state building code under
RSA 155-A, the code for energy conservation in new building construction under
RSA 155-D, the New Hampshire code for barrier-free design under Abfd 300, the
requirements of Ed 321, and that no asbestos containing materials have been
specified; and
(3) Certification
that reference any properly approved code or permit variances or
waivers.
(q)
Certification that the design meets the state energy code shall be provided to
the public utilities commission as required by
Puc
1803.03.
(r) The department shall provide review
comments in writing. Corrections shall be made if the review comments indicate
that the design fails to meet one or more state requirements. Documentation of
the corrections shall be provided to the department.
(s) Drawings and specifications shall be
provided to the office of the state fire marshal. A letter of approval by the
state fire marshal shall be issued and distributed upon the fire marshal's
approval of drawings and specifications. A copy of the letter of approval shall
be provided to the department.
(t)
If the project involves construction or extensive renovations of food service
facilities, drawings and specifications shall be reviewed and approved by the
bureau of food protection in the department of health and human services as
required by He-P 2304. A copy of the letter of approval shall be provided to
the department.
(u) If the project
includes a well or septic system, approval shall be obtained from the
department of environmental services as required by RSA 485 and Env-Dws 406 and
RSA 485-A and Env-Wq 1000, respectively. A copy of the approval(s) shall be
provided by the applicant to the department.
(v) If the project includes an addition to a
building using an existing well or septic system, but does not expand the
capacity of the system, certification that the existing system is adequate
shall be provided by an individual properly licensed in New Hampshire to give
such certification.
(w) Upon
receipt and approval of all required documents, the department shall approve a
project for a school building aid grant and disburse funds to a school district
or charter school as described in
Ed 321.22.
(x) Following completion of all construction
work and final actual costs have been determined, the school district or
charter school shall submit a request for final payment with the following
information:
(1) Project information including
the name of the project, contact person, the contracted date for project
completion, and overall cost of the project;
(2) Final space information;
(3) Actual project costs;
(4) Final unit costs;
(5) Actual project funding sources and
documentation of each source;
(6)
Explanation of all deviations from the approved design and cost;
(7) A summary of invoices with date of
invoice, vendor, description of item, amount of invoice, and category of item
type such as a site acquisition or development cost, a construction cost, a
planning and design cost, or a furniture, fixtures and equipment
cost;
(8) A signed statement from
the school administrator, the person in charge of finances, and school board
members or board of trustees, that the project is complete, the summary of
invoices submitted are accurate, and that the project was built in accordance
with all applicable building aid rules and law to the best of their
knowledge;
(9) Other information on
code compliance, income sources, and required approval from other state
agencies, not previously submitted; and
(10) A digital copy of the information in (1)
through (9) above.
(y)
After review and verification of the information submitted in Ed 321.21(z), the
department shall issue a project completion letter stating that all necessary
requirements have been met and that all payments are final.
#8265, eff 1-22-05; amd by #8631, eff 5-19-06; ss by
#10363, eff 6-15-13
